The Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Foundation of Cleveland, Ohio is donating NIS 20 million in aid to the citizens of Israel in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. The donation includes NIS 1.75 million to assist residents of Jerusalem, approximately NIS 1.5 million to aid new immigrant soldiers serving in the Israel Defense Forces, and about NIS 1 million to assist lone soldiers and sponsor cultural activities on IDF bases, which will entertain soldiers while providing income for local artists from all walks of life.
The balance of funds will be distributed to the Israel Association of Community Centers to support activities for populations with special needs; to Beit Issie Shapiro to support children and adults with disabilities; to varied causes in Israel’s ultra-Orthodox community, including support for children with special needs, digital learning in ultra-Orthodox high schools, and a hotline for emotional and social support; to ERAN for emotional first aid by telephone and internet; to a program supporting children with ADHD; to a nonprofit organization for the prevention of violence against women, to women’s shelters, and to shelters for at-risk youth; for training parents and teachers in digital learning; for purchasing and distributing food for needy populations; for students in Arab-Bedouin society in the Negev; for purchasing computers that will enable distance learning for children in the periphery; and for closing gaps in Israeli society. The Foundation will also provide assistance to the cities of Jerusalem, Eilat, Beer Sheva, Yeruham, Nahariya, and Kiryat Yam, and to the eastern Negev region.
The Mandel Foundation will also assist initiatives aimed at relieving medical staff and their families, including support to members of medical teams in Jerusalem who are in quarantine or isolation due to exposure to the virus. It will also make a significant contribution to support preparations for life after the crisis, including job training for unemployed workers and incentives to employ the unemployed.
Based in Cleveland, Ohio, the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Foundation was founded in 1953 and has been operating in Israel for the last 30 years. With its Israel headquarters in Jerusalem, the Foundation has invested more than NIS 1.5 billion in Israel to date. The Foundation has four units that conduct leadership programs in Israel: the Mandel School for Educational Leadership, the Mandel Leadership Institute, the Mandel Center for Leadership in the Negev, and the Mandel Center for Leadership in the North. The current donation, like the Foundation's many donations over the years, is an expression of the Mandel Foundation’s commitment to the welfare of Israeli society and to the State of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state.
